Chapter 8 Chapter VII

The first match of the semi-finals was between Toride Gakuen and Nanzan High School in Kyoto. Yagi and Kuwahara sat behind the net in the field stand of Koshien. "I'm really sorry!" Kuwahara has been apologizing non-stop since last night. Last night, due to Zhongshan's attitude of taking him to Mukai unconditionally, he felt relaxed for a while, and fell asleep in the conference room of Dongdu News, and the building was empty.He went back to the hotel listlessly, and was scolded by Oyagi for a while! No wonder!The purpose of all the hard work so far is to complete an exclusive report before the championship and runner-up finals. Once Zhongshan escapes here, all the hard work will be in vain.

And early this morning, Zhongshan called. Nakayama expressed the hope that Yagi would remain silent until the end of the final and let the players concentrate on playing.He has revealed the truth, and he will tell Yagi everything after the finals. As for Toto News, he will definitely not do an exclusive special report during the competition...Oyagi has no choice but to accept this condition. Although Kuwahara kept persuading him, the information he had seized so far was enough, and he could sell it to some newspaper or magazine at a high price.However, in fact, what the two can grasp is Shibata or Mukai's murder case involving Yajima, and the suspicion of Shinomitsu and Narashino Nishiyu using improper means to win the game. The most fatal weakness is that there is no conclusive evidence.

Oyagi weighed the results and believed that it is better to wait for the real inside story than to disclose it without evidence. Even if it is published after the Koshien Competition, its news value is higher.What's more, Zhongshan said that he would give up the exclusive special report to himself, so he should be able to believe it. Zhongshan probably also estimated that Oyagi would make such a judgment! As a result, the two had to sit obediently in the auditorium of Koshien. The game kicked off with Toride Gakuen’s starting pitcher Miyamoto’s perfect pitch. In the first half of the inning, hitters went up and down three times, all of which were struck out by three balls, and all were straight balls. The fastest ball speed was 158 kilometer.

Nanshan's hitters were overwhelmed by Miyamoto's momentum and speed, without even swinging a bat. "Hey, it's different from his usual pitching, it seems like he's trying his best." O Yagi also drank beer early.He already liked baseball, and he let go of everything today, intending to enjoy the two games in the semifinals. In the second and third innings, Miyamoto continued to record strikeouts. At the end of the five innings, there were thirteen strikeouts against opponents. All were straight balls, not even a changeup shot. A strange noise gradually spread throughout the stadium.On the one hand, I am looking forward to an amazing record; on the other hand, I have a feeling of trembling about Miyamoto's pitching momentum.

Under Miyamoto's all-out pitching, Toride Gakuen's offensive line was also rarely lively. In the first inning, he scored a point and scored a point, and added two points in the second half of the fifth inning. At the end of five innings, the score was 3-0.Judging from Miyamoto's pitching situation, Toride Gakuen should be able to win easily. "Look! Miyamoto will definitely let go." Oyagi drank the third glass of beer and wiped the foam around his lips with his hand. "He is a super shooter, and he can win even if he relaxes. If he is concerned about tomorrow's final, he will definitely adopt a method of conserving his strength."

Nanshan High School's hit rate is already weak, especially after the sixth bat, and the hit rate is not high. Even if Miyamoto doesn't throw the ball with all his strength, he can easily solve it. Nanshan's attack in the second half of the sixth inning, the batter's turn was seventh. The first ball was a fast outside corner straight ball into the base. There was a "bump", and the blunt sound of the ball falling into the catcher's mitt could be clearly heard by Oyagi sitting above the infield stands behind the net. "Ah, I still throw the ball with all my strength! Today's Miyamoto is a bit strange."

"Yes! I seem to be fascinated by ghosts. Look, I have goose bumps all over my body." Another strikeout.There was a commotion all around the stadium.As a result, Toride Gakuen scored again later, beating Nanshan 7-0. Miyamoto missed a perfect game with an infield hit, but struck out a conference record 22 times. The moment the last hitter was struck out, the stadium erupted in thunderous applause.That's not just because Miyamoto set a record of 22 strikeouts, but because of the admiration for Miyamoto's courage to throw straight balls from beginning to end, so the applause is unreserved.Before this, Koshien has staged countless tragedies and comedies, but it is probably unprecedented that a pitcher's pitching can make people so moved!

Even after Shinmitsu and Narashino Nishi started pre-match practice for the second match, the excitement among the crowd was still there. The battle between Shinko and Narashino Nishi is about to start in this strange atmosphere! "It's finally about to start." Kuwahara said with his face flushed with excitement and heat. "I don't know what the outcome of the game will be?" "How much is the betting point?" "It seems to be 0." "0? So, all gamblers should buy Nashino Nishi to win! Regardless of pitching strength, hitting or fielding, Nashino Nishi has the upper hand."

"However, some people will look at Shinko's traditional strength." "So, Qingfeng will instruct Xinguang to win!" "Maybe! But, will Mukai obey?" "It should have been negotiated, so the betting point is decided to be 0!" "That's right." The referee announces the start of the game. As the two talked side by side in low voices, the audience was also excited.In fact, the audience had been looking forward to the fierce battle between Nobumitsu and Narashino Nishi, but now they were injected with a dose of stimulant by Miyamoto's strong bet.Of course, both the inside and outside stands were shrouded in a strange state of excitement.

"However, it's too noisy." Oyagi said after glancing at the gentlemanly man in his fifties who stood up and shouted at the court. The game started quietly.In the first and second innings, both teams hit base, but failed to score.Into the third game. "Will magic be used?" "The two teams know each other's inside story. Moreover, it was an extraordinary means to win. It is not necessary to use it in a situation like today where the outcome has been agreed upon." "good." As Oyagi predicted, neither team seemed to use "magic". Although there were sporadic hits, they were unable to support in time.Since both teams have strong relief pitchers, unlike other schools, the main pitchers have to throw too many games in Koshien, so the pitching condition is excellent.

It was 0-0 until the sixth inning, but in the first half of the seventh inning, Nashino Nishi hit first base with a walkout, and after that, Fujishima, the fourth batter, hit the second home run of the big game to left field stands. "Hey! No! What the hell is going on here?" Kuwahara screamed. "It can't be to create a climax of the game." O Yagi also shook his head. Looking at Shinko's players' lounge, Director Shibata couldn't hide his surprised expression, as if he was looking at Mukai in Narashino Nishi's players' lounge. In this round, Nashino Nishi scored two points in a row. In the second half of the seventh inning, Shinmitsu was attacking, and the third batman Sugimura hit a curveball aimed at the third ball and hit a single in front of right field.Narashino Nishi immediately called a timeout. "It's too early to call a timeout so soon." Kuwahara said while chewing a mouthful of peanuts. "No, Shinmitsu started using 'magic', that's why Mukai immediately instructed the countermeasures. This match is not a fraud match, probably because Mukai betrayed the Qingfengkai. It seems that the next one will be a good show." "Really? But, Mukai is not afraid of getting into trouble?" Kuwahara also stopped throwing peanuts into his mouth, looked at the players gathered around the pitcher's plate, and then at Oyagi. "However, how does Mukai prevent the 'magic'?" "Probably with a slider." "Slider?" "During the game yesterday, Nakayama said it. It seems that 'magic' doesn't work on the slider." "What's the meaning?" "I don't understand either, but it seems that the 'magic' can distinguish between a straight ball and a curve ball, but not a slider. Actually, that's right, the players from Shinmitsu didn't hit Kurita's slider yesterday." "Hmm..." Oyagi crossed his arms and pondered.However, I can't figure out why this is the case. "The game continues." ——What kind of pitch did you throw? Oyagi watched Horiuchi's pitching action. Shinko adopted the tactic of regaining one point first.Yoshizawa, who was fourth, sent the runner up to second base with a striker and expected Noshin Nishikawa, who was fifth, to hit a single. Horiuchi unexpectedly threw a super-slow pitch on the first pitch, and Nishikawa didn't swing his bat in silence.After a good shot, Horiuchi followed up with a fast straight shot. Although Nishikawa swung his bat, but the timing was wrong, he hit a high-flying foul ball behind the catcher.On the third ball, Horiuchi throws a slider on the edge of the outer corner! Nishikawa's swing missed.A sigh resounded from Shinko's cheerleaders. Zhongshan sat alone on a cool chair in the park. About ten children were playing baseball in the weed-covered square in front of them.No, maybe not baseball!There are only home plate and first base. After hitting the batter, he rushes to the first base. When the next batter hits, the previous one returns to home plate. Is baseball with this rule popular among kids?Or is it a game method that the children here figured out by themselves? However, none of this matters!What moved Zhongshan was the undisguised cheerfulness and liveliness of the children.Cheering when you hit a hit, stomping in regret when you get a stab or a shutout.Moreover, the joy and sorrow of his companions together is something that Zhongshan has long forgotten. Zhongshan thought: This is the game, no, maybe it is the root of all sports! On the day of the semi-finals at Jiashien, Zhongshan did not dare to go to Jiashien. He was afraid of seeing the process of the game unfolding in front of him. In the early hours of this morning, he sneaked into Shinko's indoor training ground. After confirming something, he didn't go back to the hotel, but just wandered around in a daze.He hasn't showered or shaved since yesterday, and his body is full of sweat and dust, but he doesn't care. The radio next to the recliner was broadcasting live the second match of the semi-final between Shinko-en and Narashino Nishi, and the announcer's voice was raised as it was the last game. The thoughts in Zhongshan's mind were chaotic--Miyamoto threw the ball almost tragically with all his strength in the first game. Perhaps, except for Miyamoto himself, only Sanada and Zhongshan knew the real meaning! Last night, after persuading Mukai to stop using improper means was rejected, Nakayama called Sanada.He wanted to persuade Sanada, who might also know the truth, and hoped that Sanada could dissuade Mukai and Shibata. Sanada frankly admitted that there was indeed such a thing, but he was "wasting effort" to persuade the two of them. He had talked to the two of them countless times, and the other party ignored them accordingly. "In order to make Koshien no longer filthy and to wake them up, all I can do is to defeat them and show them the champion." Sanada said. "I told Miyamoto about this and let him understand the true meaning of why Shinmitsu and Narashino Nishi must be defeated. At that time, he promised to let me see him really burn himself." This must be able to trust Miyamoto 100%, otherwise, before the semifinals, it will definitely bring him a heavier mental burden! Sure enough, Miyamoto lived up to expectations, and he showed his true all-out pitching. Zhongshan's chest was hot, and he could fully feel Miyamoto's bearing.Miyamoto was full of anger and sorrow for the two teams of Nobumitsu and Narashino Nishi who were watching the game from the stands, and finished the game with all their strength. ——Just rely on your own strength to fight upright!Miyamoto must have appealed in this way. ——Unexpectedly, there are still such enthusiastic young people.Zhongshan's gradually empty heart because of this incident was filled again by Miyamoto's powerful straight ball. Cheers came over the radio.I don't know when, Shinko's final attack has two out, and Shinko, who was trying to win the second consecutive summer at Koshien, was finally forced to the brink of defeat! ——In the second half of the ninth inning, Shinko-en had two outs in the last attack, and there was no one on the base. Get tomorrow's final right?Pitcher Horiuchi raised his leg... a strike, a straight ball from the outside corner, two strikes and no balls, the batter was in crisis.Horiuchi's ball speed has not weakened. It seems to be stimulated by Miyamoto's pitcher in the previous game. Narashino Nishi's ace pitcher Horiuchi also threw the ball with all his strength.The pitcher gets into position, pitches, misses the swing, strikes out, game over. Chiba's Narashino Nishi defeated Osaka's Shinko-en. In this way, tomorrow's final will be a Kanto duel between Narashino Nishi representing Chiba and Toride Gakuen representing Ibaraki.What's more, it was also the former Jiashiyuan champion shooting partners who each acted as supervisors and faced off in the finals of Jiashiyuan... Zhongshan turned off the radio.Silence suddenly surrounded him—at some point, the children were gone. Horiuchi of Narashino Nishi will use the slider a lot, obviously to block Nobumitsu's "magic" technique.Shinomitsu uses "magic", but Narashino Nishi does not, which means that Seikaze will instruct Shinmitsu to win! However, the result of the game was that Narashino won the game.what on earth is this kind of happenings?Zhongshan didn't understand.It's just that he can be sure that something happened. Zhongshan thought to himself: I can't do without seeing Mukai!"Magic" must not be used in tomorrow's final, and he must be persuaded again. However, Zhongshan also has a sense of foreboding. Zhongshan stood up.Before walking out of the park, he looked back at the square just now.On the grass where the children have disappeared, only two pieces of cardboard are left that have been trampled and used as base bags. "Yagi, come out from the back door." Kuwahara ran over panting. "Oh? Then let's go too!" After Narashino Nishi defeated Shinko-en, Oyagi judged that there must be some action between Seikazekai, Kuniyoshi and Mukai.It is very likely that Mukai ignored Qingfenghui's instructions and won the game, so it is impossible for Qingfenghui to be silent. Therefore, he and Kuwahara monitored the entrance and the back door of the Bamboo House Hotel where Mukai was staying. Look at the watch, it's just after nine o'clock. Mukai, who appeared from the back door, was obviously concerned about the surrounding situation, so the two followed carefully keeping a sufficient distance. It took about ten minutes to walk!The silhouette of a school-like building can be seen ahead in the direction toward the well. "Yagi, that's Nankai High School's stadium." Narashinoshi borrowed the Nanhai High School Stadium, which is closer to the hotel, as the team's practice venue. Without hesitation, Mukai climbed over the fence surrounding the school and disappeared into the darkness inside. Surrounded by the wall to the left, there must be street lights in front of the main entrance!The light can be seen, but there is no light in the place where the two are located. Only the light from the windows of nearby houses shines on the concrete brick part with white concrete bricks in the lower half and black iron sheet wall in the upper half.It's dark inside the wall! After waiting for about a minute, the two climbed over the wall carefully and without making a sound. "Where did you go?" Kuwahara asked in a low voice in the darkness. "Look in the direction of the field." There seemed to be a few street lights on on the other side of the stadium, and pale lights could be seen across the classroom. Proceeding along the classroom wall, the two came to the edge of the building.There is a road leading to the stadium in front of you. Across the road seems to be a gymnasium with a huge building. The moment the two walked out of the road, they heard a muffled conversation. "Shh, there's someone!" Oyagi grabbed the arm of Kuwahara who wanted to move forward. The two stopped moving and listened intently.It was indeed the voice of a whispered conversation. "Behind the gymnasium, go and have a look." Kuwahara tiptoed forward. "Be careful." Oyagi also cautiously followed behind. When the two crossed the road and were close to the wall of the gymnasium... "It's all your fault!" Someone said angrily. "It's Kuniyoshi." Oyagi cautiously went around to the back of the gymnasium and looked into the darkness. Between the thick concrete pillars protruding obliquely from the gymnasium wall to the ground, stood two men. "It's Kuniyoshi and Mukai." Kuwahara whispered. The two faced each other without knowing what to say.Kuniyoshi questioned in a somewhat forceful tone, while Mukai seemed to be answering. "Still holding the knife!" The knife on Kuniyoshi's right hand flashed brightly under the reflection of the street lamp, and swayed towards the front of Ii's face. "What are you talking about? Can't you hear me?" It must be about fifteen meters away!But because of lowering his voice, he couldn't hear the content of the conversation clearly. "Closer." Saying that, Kuwahara bent forward. "Be careful, any noise will be detected." Oyagi reminded. Only the occasional sound of approaching vehicles can be heard, and there is no other sound. Even if you just step on a twig, you will definitely be noticed. Kuwahara raised his right hand lightly to indicate that there was no problem, and continued to move forward. About seven or eight meters away from the two of them!Suddenly there was a crisp sound, it turned out that he stepped on broken glass. "Who?" Kuniyoshi and Mukai turned to look in the direction of the voice at the same time. "Wow!" Kuwahara stood up straight. Spotlight flashed.In an instant, the figures of Kuniyoshi and Mukai who stood there in a daze appeared in the darkness, and then disappeared immediately. "Bastard, stop!" Kuwahara turned and ran while holding the camera. Kuniyoshi followed closely, the knife in his right hand glowing. --Danger!Oyagi wanted to scream, but couldn't make a sound. Kuwahara ran forward desperately while turning his head, but Kuniyoshi's legs were faster than him. As soon as he passed in front of Oyagi, Kuniyoshi's left hand had grabbed the collar behind Kuwahara's neck, and Kuwahara staggered and fell to the ground.Kuniyoshi straddled him, swung his right hand holding the knife upwards, and the streetlights illuminated Kuniyoshi's crazily distorted profile. Oyagi's feet seemed to be glued to the ground, and he didn't move. At this time, there was a sudden sound of objects breaking through the air. With a muffled sound, Kuniyoshi backed up, and a white object fell to the ground, it was a baseball. "Stop!" Kuniyoshi still wanted to chase Kuwahara, so Mukai stopped him from behind and hugged him. "Let go!" Kuniichi roared.He struggled to shake off Mukai's arm, and the two became entangled. "Oh!" Someone snorted.Mukai's body collapsed to the ground, and Kuniyoshi screamed and ran away. At this time, another man rushed out from behind the gymnasium. "Zhongshan!" Oyagi couldn't help shouting. "Mukai, are you okay?" Zhongshan helped Mukai up. "Wow! It's bleeding." Kuwahara screamed. Mukai can be seen with a knife stuck in his stomach! Oyagi's feet were finally able to move, but, as if they were rusty, he couldn't move according to his will. "Call an ambulance!" Zhongshan said to Kuwahara who barely stood up. Kuwahara ran away without saying a word, with a look of fear remaining on his face. "Been stabbed?" Oyagi asked hoarsely. "You can see it right? It's all your fault." "I didn't mean that..." At this moment, Mukai raised his head, closed his eyes, and asked, "Is it Zhongshan?" "The ambulance will be here soon, please be patient." "I need your help with something." Mukai said intermittently. "What's the matter?" Zhongshan knelt down and approached Mukai. "I want the players to play tomorrow, so you get out of here until the ambulance arrives, I don't want to be identified." Indeed, if an accident happens to the supervisor at this time, Narashino Nishi will inevitably withdraw from the final. Although Mukai has betrayed the players, he also hopes that they can play in the final! Zhongshan hesitated, should he just ignore this matter?But make up your mind right now. "Okay, I'll do that." "Also, pick up that ball for me." Nakayama looked in the direction of Well Finger and saw a baseball.He reached out to pick it up and handed it to Mukai. Mukai stared at the ball, it was rare, it was the soft eyes that Nakayama had not seen for a long time. "This is the victory ball from winning the summer tournament that year. I hope you give it to Sanada." Said, Mukai handed the ball to Zhongshan. "Why did you do this until now?" "With this ball, my identity will be revealed, and... anyway, I want you to give it to Sanada." "I see. Is there anything else you want me to say?" Mukai pondered for a while and said, "You are right..." "you are right?" "That's right, that's fine." At this time, the siren of the ambulance came from far and near. "You can go." Xiang Jing leaned his head on the ground, seeming to be in quite pain. "Do as Mukai said! The ambulance will arrive soon, let's go." Zhongshan said to Oyagi and Kuwahara who had called back. When the three of them were about to leave... "By the way, there is one more thing I want to say." Xiang Jing opened his eyes blindly, and said with the last bit of strength. "What's the matter?" Zhongshan ran to Xiangjing's side and squatted down. "I killed Yajima." "what!" The three looked at each other. "He wanted to lower the price of the information. I killed him in a fit of rage, that's all. All right! You can go." Mukai closed his eyes tightly and rested his head on the ground.His face was pale, and it seemed that it was not just because of the streetlights. —Maybe it's hopeless!Zhongshan thought. The ambulance appears to have stopped in front of the gate.The three climbed out of the back wall and hid behind the wall to make sure that the rescuers found Mukai before leaving the scene. "Are you following us?" Oyagi asked while walking. Zhongshan silently nodded.Kuwahara seemed to have not recovered from the blow, his face was livid, and he bowed his head in silence. "Don't say anything, just keep your promise to Mukai." "I know." Oyagi had to agree, after all, he and Kuwahara should be responsible for such consequences. "After the final, I will tell you everything. Before that, please don't take any action. I hope the final can go smoothly." Zhongshan walked forward after finishing speaking. "What, don't you come to the hotel where we live together? I also have something to ask you." Such an unfortunate event happened before him, and after hearing what Mukai said, Oyagi also gave up the idea of ​​doing an exclusive report before the final, but he wanted to talk to Nakayama about the Yajima murder that Mukai said last. Zhongshan looked ahead and nodded weakly. After the three left the scene with a sufficient distance, they stopped the empty taxi and sat in the back seat together. "Can I see it?" Not long after the drive, Oyagi said to Zhongshan who was sitting beside him with his eyes closed.Zhongshan silently handed the ball to Oyagi. Although the inside of the taxi was dim, the words written on the ball could still be read through the light of the street lights. There are blood-stained fingerprints next to the words, probably when Mukai handed the ball to Zhongshan! Zhongshan also stared at the handwriting and bloodstains. ——What was he thinking? Nakayama's face was like a Noh mask, expressionless.